Public Figures & Cultural Luminaries

Jacques Parizeau

Canada

9 August 1930 – 1 June 2015 (84 years old)

Architect of modern Quebec economic sovereignty, twenty-sixth Premier of Quebec, and leader of the 1995 sovereignty referendum.

Montreal, Canada

1 Full Record →

2,662

🕯️ 110

B.B. King

Riley B. King

United States

1925 – 2015 (89 years old)

The undisputed 'King of the Blues' whose stinging guitar vibrato on 'Lucille' defined modern electric blues guitar.

Indianola, Mississippi, United States

2,662 Full Record →

Amar Laskri

عمار العسكري

Algeria

1942 – 2015 (73 years old)

Eminent film director whose 1971 war film 'Patrouille à l'est' (Patrol to the East) is celebrated as one of the greatest masterpieces of Algerian revolutionary cinema.

Algiers, Algeria

3 Full Record →

4

Sophie El Goulli

صوفي القلي

Tunisia

1931 – 2015 (84 years old)

Pioneering art historian, novelist, and poet who founded the academic study of Tunisian visual arts history, documented the Tunis School of painting, and directed the Cinémathèque Tunisienne.

Tunis, Tunisia

4 Full Record →

13

Abdel Rahman el-Abnudi

عبد الرحمن الأبنودي

Egypt

1938 – 2015 (77 years old)

Affectionately celebrated as 'Al-Khal' (The Maternal Uncle), he was Egypt's premier vernacular poet who spent thirty years traveling across the Arab world to record the million-verse oral epic Sirat Bani Hilal.

Ismailia, Egypt

13 Full Record →

11

Hassan El-Shazly

حسن الشاذلي

Egypt

1943 – 2015 (71 years old)

All-time historic top goalscorer of the Egyptian Premier League with 173 league goals, starring for Tersana SC and finishing as top scorer of the 1963 Africa Cup of Nations with six goals.

Giza, Egypt

11 Full Record →

Art

2

Theodosia Okoh

Theodosia Salome Okoh

Ghana

1922-06-13 – 2015-04-19 (92 years old)

Distinguished Ghanaian artist who designed the national flag of Ghana in 1957, creating the iconic red, gold, green, and black star layout adopted across Africa.

Accra, Ghana

2 Full Record →

37

🕯️ 260

Richard Benaud

Australia

1930 – 2015 (84 years old)

Australian cricketer and commentator, inspirational captain who never lost a Test series and became universally beloved as the 'Voice of Cricket'.

Sydney, Australia

37 Full Record →

Sid Ali Kouiret

سيد علي كويرات

Algeria

1933 – 2015 (82 years old)

Towering figure of Algerian cinema and theater, iconic star of 'L'Opium et le Bâton' who uttered the immortal line: 'Ali, a death for the homeland is a life!'

Algiers, Algeria

3 Full Record →

10

Abdelhadi Tazi

عبد الهادي التازي

Morocco

1921 – 2015 (93 years old)

Distinguished Moroccan historian, diplomat, and member of the Royal Academy of Morocco, internationally renowned for his 10-volume historical study of the Qarawiyyin and critical edition of Ibn Battuta.

Salé, Morocco

10 Full Record →

6

Ezzedine Gannoun

عز الدين قنون

Tunisia

1953 – 2015 (62 years old)

Pioneering theatrical visionary who transformed an abandoned cabaret into the famed El Hamra theater in Tunis, establishing the Arab and African Center for Theatrical Research.

Tunis, Tunisia

6 Full Record →

Statesmanship & Statesmen

Tomas Tranströmer

Tomas Gösta Tranströmer

Sweden

1931-04-15 – 2015-03-26 (83 years old)

Swedish poet awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize in Literature 'because, through his condensed, translucent images, he gives us fresh access to reality', translated into sixty languages.

Stockholm, Sweden

3 Full Record →

34

🕯️ 670

Lee Kuan Yew

李光耀

🌐 Republic of Singapore

1923-09-16 – 2015-03-23 (91 years old)

World-renowned master of statecraft who authored Singapore's economic miracle ('From Third World to First') based on meritocracy, pragmatism, anti-corruption, and multi-racial harmony.

Singapore, Republic of Singapore

34 Full Record →

Grace Ogot

Grace Emily Akinyi

Kenya

1930-05-15 – 2015-03-18 (84 years old)

Trailblazing East African author whose 1968 collection 'Land Without Thunder' made her the first female East African fiction writer published in English, later serving as Member of Parliament.

Siaya, Kenya

3 Full Record →

33

🕯️ 310

Florence Arthaud

France

1957 – 2015 (57 years old)

French sailor and navigator, known as 'The Little Bride of the Atlantic', who won the grueling solo Route du Rhum transatlantic yacht race in 1990.

Cannes, France

33 Full Record →

63

🕯️ 330

Camille Muffat

France

1989 – 2015 (25 years old)

French competitive swimmer who won three medals including 400m freestyle gold at the 2012 London Olympics, tragically killed in a helicopter crash.

Nice, France

63 Full Record →

Humanitarian & Peace

22